In fact, in November 2004, 26 Saudi clerics published a religious statement urging Muslims to wage holy war in Iraq. "Jihad against the occupiers is a must," said the statement. "[It is] not only a legitimate right but a religious duty."

NBC News went to Saudi Arabia to talk to some of the clerics, including Sheik Safar Al-Hawaly, who signed the letter.

"It is the right of all the people in the world to push and to resist the occupier," he says.

Sheik Mosa al-Garni — who receives a government salary — told NBC News that jihad is justified because Americans are aggressors against a Muslim country.

"The terrorist in Iraq is the American Army," he says.

He urges young Saudis to go to Iraq to fight.

"If you are physically capable, don't hesitate. Go with God's blessings," he says.

The Saudi government acknowledges that none of the four clerics has been reprimanded or punished.

A Saudi dissident says Saudi leaders engage in double talk.

"The public message says, 'Terrorism is bad.' The private message says, 'Terrorism is bad only when it’s against us.' When it's against the infidels or other people, it's OK and even celebrated," says Ali Al-Ahmed with the Saudi Institute.

However, a senior Saudi official insists that these clerics represent "a vocal fringe minority," whose views do not represent the Saudi government or religious establishment. He says the government cannot control these clerics because most are not on the payroll, and they are exercising their rights to free speech.